UCLA School of Dentistry

09/03/2026

Incredibly, it's year 3️⃣3️⃣ for the educational and cultural exchange program between dental students at UCLA, 明海大学 Meikai University, and 朝日大学 - Asahi University! In mid-August, ten Japanese 🇯🇵 students and their two faculty chaperones were hosted in Westwood by members of the 2028 class for more than a week of shared learning experiences and excursions across Southern California. These new friends will reunite in March, when our Dental Bruins visit the land of the Rising Sun.

This enriching program resulted from the vision of several educators, including Dr. Susumu Miyata – longtime chairman of both Meikai and Asahi – and the late Dr. Henry Takei at UCLA. Learn more at 🔗 dentistry.ucla.edu/articles/news-articles/celebrating-33-years-of-cross-cultural-exchange

08/31/2026

While most UCLA students are enjoying a leisurely end to the summer, our Dental Bruins are putting in WORK ... Good luck on final exams!

08/27/2026

A new resource advancing research on Fusobacterium nucleatum 🦠📘 has arrived! 🔗 https://bit.ly/4zIdJk6

"Fusobacterium nucleatum: Methods and Protocols", edited by Chair of the Division of Oral and Systemic Health Sciences Dr. Hung Ton-That, brings together cutting-edge methods for studying this important oral pathobiont and its links to periodontitis, oral cancer, colorectal cancer, and more. Congratulations to Dr. Ton-That and fellow UCLA Dentistry faculty contributors Drs. Jia Chang, Yi-Wei Chen, Yvonne Hernandez-Kapila, Reuben Kim, and No-Hee Park (and their trainees) on helping advance this research!

The digital edition is available to readers at participating institutions through Springer Nature.

08/25/2026

The School’s most cherished summer tradition – Dinner for 1️⃣2️⃣ Dental Students – has come to a close! An extension of UCLA's longstanding Dinner for 12 Strangers, this student-led initiative demonstrates the power of community and the Dental Bruin network to inspire and guide one another over a delicious meal!
💙🐻🍽️💛
A huge THANK YOU to student organizers Fuyuto Shigihara, D.D.S. ’27, Amy Becklin, D.D.S. ’28, Alexis Luu, D.D.S. ’29, and Quinn Sprague, D.D.S. ’29, and ESPECIALLY our gracious UCLA Alumni hosts (+ their partners):
• Melanie Gullett, D.D.S. ’83, and George Maranon, D.D.S. ‘83 (Slide 1)
• Mark Ortega, D.D.S. ’15, and Christine Fortmann, M. '19 (Slide 2)
• Joan Otomo-Corgel, D.D.S. '76 (Slide 3)
• Gerald P. Roodzant, D.D.S. ‘79 (Slide 4)
• Shukan Kanuga, D.D.S. ’06 (Slide 5)
• Samira Shafaee, D.D.S. ’01 (group not pictured)

08/18/2026

The UCLA School of Dentistry is honored to be featured in the 2025 Highmark Health Community Impact Report: 🔗 bit.ly/3SA9CWy

Through the Community-Based Clinical Education (CBCE) program, students gain valuable clinical experience while expanding access to oral health care in underserved communities. Thank you to the United Concordia Dental Charitable Fund for its support of this program and our shared commitment to expanding access to care!

08/17/2026

Scroll ↔️ to meet our first-year resident cohorts! Postgraduate residents have the opportunity to enhance their education and pursue advanced training in a wide range of specialized fields as well as general dentistry.

Explore the 12 postgraduate certificate programs at 🔗 dentistry.ucla.edu/academics-admissions/residency-training-programs

08/10/2026

The School will soon break ground on a new 2,377-square-foot Special Patient Care Clinic that strives to become Southern California's premier oral healthcare facility for treating medically compromised patients, thanks to a $4.2 million grant from the California Health Facility Financing Authority (CHFFA).

A $4.2M state grant to expand the UCLA School of Dentistry's Special Patient Care Clinic will adress a critical need for medically complex patients.

08/07/2026

| Some culture, in between treating caries! Last Saturday, members of the Japanese Student Dental Association accompanied Professor Emeritus Dr. Ron Mito on a behind-the-scenes tour of the 🇯🇵 Japanese American 🇺🇸 National Museum, which is renovating its galleries through the end of the year.

JDSA Vice President Alette Eide, D.D.S. ’29, said: 🗣️ “Visiting JAMN together was a really special experience, since some of us had families that were directly affected by the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans. This was also a rare opportunity to tour the museum before it reopened to the public, and we are very grateful to Dr. Mito for making this arrangement possible. We are thankful also to the museum staff for providing such a wonderful experience and showing us around Little Tokyo afterwards.”

08/05/2026

Thank you to colleagues at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health for spotlighting Dr. Damaris Arriola Zarate, who is concurrently pursuing Pediatric Dentistry residency training and an M.P.H. at UCLA.

UCLA Fielding graduate student Dr. Damaris Arriola Zarate is pursuing a Master of Public Health alongside her dental clinical training at UCLA's School of De...

08/03/2026

Our School of Dentistry community mourns the passing of Distinguished Clinical Professor Emeritus of Periodontics Henry H. Takei, D.D.S., M.S., who died on July 29 at the age of 88.

A beloved educator, mentor, clinician, and internationally recognized leader in periodontics, Dr. Takei devoted nearly six decades to advancing periodontal education and patient care while shaping generations of dental professionals at UCLA and around the world.

The co-founder of UCLA's Periodontics Residency Program, and leading clinician in the field for more than five decades, was 88.